Tour Eastern State Penitentiary and Terror Behind the Walls During NHC –
04-26-2010

Daytime Prison Tours
We welcome anyone attending the National Haunters Convention to visit Eastern State Penitentiary. The penitentiary is located in center city Philadelphia, about 20 miles from the Valley Forge Convention Center. Eastern State is open for daytime prison tours every day from 10 am to 5 pm. Daytime prison tours include our "Voices of Eastern State" audio tour narrated by actor Steve Buscemi, special guided tours on specific subjects, include a new tour focusing on punishment that includes the windowless cells in a tunnel under Cellblock 14, artist installations and history exhibits, including our newly opened TowerCam! exhibit.

NHC attendees who show their NHC show badge any day between Thursday, April 29 and Monday, May 3 will receive $5 off Adult admission. To learn more about Eastern State Penitentiary visit www.EasternState.org.

Behind the Scenes of Terror Behind the Walls
During National Haunters Convention, ESP Staffers Brett Bertolino and Jason Ohlsen will be offering colleagues an informal “Behind the Scenes” tour of Eastern State’s haunted attraction Terror Behind the Walls on Thursday, April 29th at 4 pm and Friday, April 30th at 10 am. These lights on, informal tours of four attractions (Lock Down, Infirmary, the Experiment in 3D and NightWatch) will not include actors.

About Eastern State Penitentiary
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site was once the most famous and expensive prison in the world, but stands today in ruin, a haunting world of crumbling cellblocks and empty guard towers. Known for its grand architecture and strict discipline, this was the world’s first true “penitentiary,” a prison designed to inspire penitence, or true regret, in the hearts of convicts.

Its vaulted, sky-lit cells once held many of America’s most notorious criminals, including bank robber Willie Sutton and Al Capone.

About Terror Behind the Walls
The massive Eastern State Penitentiary may be the best location in the United States for a haunted house.

With massive walls, lined with towers and arrow-slit windows, this prison was built to intimidate. It was the most expensive building in the United States and the most famous prison in the world when it opened in 1829. It remained open for 142 years, housing some of America’s most notorious criminals. Al Capone and the flamboyant bank robber, “Slick” Willie Sutton once called it home.
The prison was abandoned in 1971, and stands today in a state of profound, eerie ruin. It’s been declared haunted by dozens of professional paranormal investigation teams, and featured Fox Television’s “Scariest Places on Earth” and Sci-Fi channel’s “Ghost Hunters.”

Terror Behind the Walls, one of the nation’s largest and most ambitious haunted houses, takes over the cellblocks each fall. Over the past fifteen years it has grown to become one of the nation’s most recognized haunted attractions. It has been called “perfect for Halloween” by the New York Times and ranked the “Number 1 Haunted House in the U.S.” by AOL City Guide

The 2010 season (September 17th through November 6th) of Terror Behind the Walls will feature five haunted attractions within the 11-acre Penitentiary complex.
All proceeds benefit preservation efforts at Eastern State Penitentiary, A National Historic Landmark.